The Solothurn steelworks relies on new technology – and controversial CO₂ compensation measures.
You can twist and turn it as you like: In steel production, CO₂ emissions cannot be completely prevented, not even in Gerlafingen. But because old scrap is recycled instead of new steel being produced here in Solothurn, this is better for the climate.
For the production of one tonne of steel, 400 kilograms of CO₂ are emitted in Gerlafingen.
Half of Swiss scrap ends up in Gerlafingen. Day and night, around 80 tons of scrap are heated to 1600 degrees every three quarters of an hour in an electric arc furnace and cast into steel.
Steelworks continuously modernized
In the future, this may even happen with green electricity. The plant has been modernized for a long time, explains Hélène Smagghe, Marketing and Sales Manager at Stahl Gerlafingen.
At the beginning of March, for example, a new furnace was put into operation that uses 20 percent less natural gas than the old one. In addition, it is possible to burn a mixture of hydrogen and natural gas in it in the future.
A lot of CO₂ is generated in addition to production when transporting the steel. Gerlafingen relies primarily on rail instead of trucks. Smagghe emphasizes that the plant already has a pretty good carbon footprint. Works that use coal to produce new steel are in a much worse position.
“For the production of one tonne of steel, 400 kilograms of CO₂ are emitted in Gerlafingen,” she says. This compares to two tons of CO₂ produced in a blast furnace per ton of steel.
Controversial green steel
The Italian Beltrame Group, which stands behind Stahl Gerlafingen, wants to significantly reduce its CO₂ emissions again by 2030. It even now offers a CO₂-free steel – green steel, so to speak.
This is possible by offsetting the resulting CO₂ – the CO₂ emissions from this green steel are therefore offset with investments in environmental projects. They work with certificates, says Marketing Manager Smagghe.
It is not real that the CO₂ emissions can actually be offset thanks to certificates.
At the WWF, the compensation certificates are considered problematic. “We clearly see this as greenwashing,” says WWF energy and climate protection expert Patrick Hofstetter. The customers would be deceived by the green label. “It is not real that the CO₂ emissions can actually be offset in this way.”
Legend:
A hot affair: 80 tons of steel are continuously melted in Gerlafingen every three quarters of an hour. The energy consumption for this is huge. According to Stahl Gerlafingen, 400 kilograms of CO₂ are produced per tonne of recycled steel.
Keystone/Gaëtan Bally
In the specific case of green steel from Gerlafingen, a hydroelectric power station in Georgia is being supported. The problem: Georgia also takes this CO₂ reduction into account. This double calculation is a zero-sum game, says Hofstetter.
Stahl Gerlafingen emphasizes that only so-called gold standards are taken into account for the certificates. So the WWF and the steel manufacturer do not agree on whether the CO₂ compensation works like this or not.
Recycling is always better
From Stahl Gerlafingen’s point of view, it is clear that recycling is always better than the production of steel. After all, five times less CO₂ is emitted than with the production of new steel, emphasizes Head of Marketing Smagghe. “So the ecological footprint is significantly smaller.”
WWF energy expert Hofstetter also agrees. This steel recycling plant in Gerlafingen is therefore important for Switzerland, he emphasizes.